Some Have Entertained Angels

RSV Hebrews 13:2

  Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.

Why is this ponderable?

Various Christian sects have a variety of opinions about the possibility of God's angels walking the earth in human form. Those who are unschooled in the Bible would likely consider this a heretical belief, a fairy tale for children, or wishful thinking.

Yet here it is in Paul's own words. You can't get any more scriptural than that.

So what are we to make of it? We know a couple of things about angels that come directly from the Word of God:

Christians believe that angels are created beings, based on (Psalms 148:2–5; Colossians 1:16): "praise ye Him, all His angels: praise ye Him, all His hosts ... for He spoke and they were made. He commanded and they were created ...".

Angels have been and will forever be involved and interested in what is happening in the lives of human beings. 

•  "Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents." (Luke 15:10, NKJV)

 In heaven, men and women will be like the angels, who do not marry or reproduce.

• At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven. (Matthew 22:30, NIV)

 Angels shout for joy, feel longing, and show many emotions in the Bible

•  while the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy (Job 38:7, NIV) 

 We also know other details from folklore, myths, and legends.

•  According to Irish folklore, Saint Patrick had a personal guardian angel named Victor.  This angel convinced Patrick that God was calling him to serve the people of Ireland. 

Some angels are "fallen angels"

The fallen angel stories come from a wide variety of sources. The legends include information about the angels called “Beelzebub”, the "Watchers" and a whole list of other fallen archangel

• Many interpreters of ancient texts believe that Greek mythology involving powerful superhuman beings such as Zeus and Apollo are actually references to the same fallen angels mentioned throughout the Old Testament and the Book of Enoch.

•  In Genesis, the fallen are referred to as the Nephilim or "sons of God" who came to earth and reproduced with humans.

• In the Jewish Book of Enoch, these angels are mentioned as children of heaven who went among the "children of men" to have children of their own. These events, according to the legend, were the cause of God casting those angels from heaven.

So when a total stranger shows up and helps us, we need to show hospitality. We may never see that person again because he or she was an angel of God. On the other hand, we need to be cautious that we are not entertaining fallen angels. They too may appear as strangers. We can discern their intentions by asking ourselves if what they suggest leads us closer to God or further away.